Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic autoimmune inflammatory disease of the central nervous system. It is a common cause of persistent disability in young adults. In patients suffering from MS, the immune system destroys the myelin sheet of axons in the brain and the spinal cord, causing a variety of neurological pathologies. In the most common form of MS, Relapsing-Remitting (RRMS), episodes of acute worsening of neurological function (exacerbations, attacks) are followed by partial or complete recovery periods (remissions) that are free of disease progression (stable).
About 50 percent of those patients with a clinically isolated syndrome (CIS) progress to clinically definite MS (CDMS) within 24 months of presentation (Kappos et al., 2007 Lancet, 370 (9585): 389-97).
There is a clinical need for a simple serological assay that predicts whether patients at clinically isolated syndrome (CIS) suggestive of MS will develop MS in a certain timeframe. Such a method for assisting in the diagnosis of RRMS that assesses the risk of CIS patients suggestive of MS to have a relapse within 24 months would be useful in determining treatment options for high risk CIS patients.